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Can financial compensation overturn the dignity of academic and athletic excellence? At least that’s what the experts and the insiders are pointing out, with NIL changing collegiate sports faster than ever. Numerous college insiders and golf coaches have openly criticized the venture. As it appears, another voice has joined the herd. If you don’t know what NIL is, it is basically a way of earning profit for collegiate golfers without losing their amateur status. Proposed under an NCAA rule change in 2021, it helped athletes support their careers while continuing their collegiate stint. It assesses the Name, Image & Likeness of a golfer, weighing their marketability for brand deals and sponsors. But that is not how the athletic world interpreted the opportunity. Using sports department reserves to fund NIL contracts, colleges began exercising NIL funds as recruitment baits. Basically, colleges started paying athletes to become a part of the roster, destroying the spirit of collegiate golf. And this idea doesn’t sit well with Georgia Tech men’s golf head coach, Bruce Heppler, who will be retiring at the end of the 2025-26 season in May. ADVERTISEMENT “I guess as this has become a little more about where is my money and where is my deal … the thing is slowly moving away from the reasons why I’ve gotten up to go to work,” Heppler quipped about NIL. He believes that with the advent of NIL, golf has become more transactional, while ignoring the development aspect of athleticism. In fact, the golf veteran has announced that this major shift has partly influenced his retirement decision, snagging away the elements of collegiate golf that had him looking in every day. ADVERTISEMENT With colleges valuing marketable amateurs over budding talents, athletes have become more of a commodity. Now we wonder why newer athletes are losing their personality and becoming more media-crafted; NIL is no doubt the driving factor. The Georgia Tech coach, who has led his team to over 73 victories, isn’t the only golf coach to have spoken against NIL. UVA head coach Bowen Sargent raised his voice on this issue earlier, revealing how NIL is rapidly shifting the recruitment environment in schools. ADVERTISEMENT Read Top Stories First From EssentiallySports Click here and check box next to EssentiallySports Lacklustre rich programs, paying money directly to their athletes, attract top-notch amateurs, while promising programs with less funding are biting the dust. From a broader perspective of what this means for the next generation of athletes, the future of collegiate sports looks wobbly at best. With NIL worsening the scene, experts cannot help but wonder what the sporting scene has in store. General trend against the NIL Ben Sargent was far from the first voice detailing the recruitment scene in schools right now. In fact, golf is only a facet of college sports, with other disciplines suffering equally as much. American football is one of those disciplines that has witnessed its foundations crumble with the NCAA rule change. ADVERTISEMENT Alabama coach Nick Saban retired from his post last year, citing NIL and its effects as one of the primary reasons that played a factor behind his decision. He revealed how recruiting motivated players turned into a hassle for the college, owing to the shifting priorities among recruits. “I thought we could have a hell of a team next year,” Saban said, “and then maybe 70 or 80% of the players you talk to, all they want to know is two things: What assurances do I have that I’m going to play because they’re thinking about transferring, and how much are you going to pay me?” Fast forward to 2025, and Saban has lifted the lid on how NIL has worked to upturn American football ever since his retirement. He shared how athletes select schools based on who pays the most, in place of school loyalty or tradition, echoing Ben Sargent’s thoughts. That has, in turn, affected the Southeastern Conference of the American leg, while helping schools in the north. ADVERTISEMENT “I do think that the culture in college football right now, with name, image and likeness (NIL) and paying players money, has actually maybe hurt the SEC a little bit and helped the schools up North,” Saban revealed.
